Jamba Juice is at it again. As another way to propel the healthy-food innovator into a $1-billion global "lifestyle" brand, Jamba Juice wants to tap into the potentially fertile U.S.-school market with a self-serve-smoothie concept called JambaGo.

It's hard to keep up with all the ways that CEO James D. White has been spurring the QSR chain's growth and broadening its brand transformation. In last month's third-quarter earnings statement alone, the company disclosed plans to extend Jamba-branded CPG products across 28,000 retail outlets to gain nationwide distribution, and the signing of a new partnership with Bare Fruit to produce three varieties of bake-dried, all-natural, 100-percent-fruit chip snacks, in a new category for Jamba.

Nation's Restaurant News reports that Jamba Juice has already opened about 30 pilot locations of JambaGo, which takes up roughly the space of a soda-fountain beverage dispenser. It offers branded packaged products as well as the option of several pre-blended smoothies that White said rival the blended-to-order quality of those made at the chain's retail outlets.Continue reading...

You like fruit juice? You like chips? You are in luck. Jamba Inc. and Bare Fruit LLC, which sources its apples from the Pacific Northwest, are joining forces for a new line of Jamba-branded dried-fruit chips, according to the Associated Press. The licensing deal will result in "all natural" chip flavors that will include mango, Fuji apple, and Granny Smith apple, which should be in stores by the new year. The company, which has 746 Jamba Juice stores in the U.S. and six outside, “has been trying to grow by licensing its brand for consumer products,” AP notes.

"Our focus continues to be on developing differentiated Jamba-branded products that make it convenient and easy for health-conscious consumers to lead healthier and more active lives,” stated Julie Washington, senior vice president and general manager, Consumer Products, Jamba Juice Company. “This latest offering, created with Bare Fruit, leverages our collective expertise in fruit to create a line of wholesome snacks that are lower in calories, higher in fiber and naturally sweet.”

Jamba Juice was also just named as one of the latest round of retail partners for the Google Wallet "tap and pay" platform.Continue reading...